Lust and Envy
by Royalty Over Reality
Summary: When Astrid Ellison delivers some bad news, Caine formulates a plot that turns her into his pawn. However, when two jealous manipulators get caught up in the same plan it's hard to tell whose playing who. Set during Gone. One shot. Caine's POV. Rated T for some suggestive material. I don't own Gone. Written for EvilOk's contest.


I don't know much about Astrid Ellison, but I do know one thing: she's the purest girl in the entire FAYZ. So, when she stepped into my office taking quick, tiny steps with a scowl on her face, I wasn't scared. I wouldn't be scared if anyone walked into Town Hall like that, but Astrid was particularly non-threatening. No amount of white hot fury could make blonde hair, white blouses, and light pink lipstick scary; particularly if the person they were trying to scare was a four bar with telekinesis, a position of power, and little-to-no morals.

"So, what brings you here?" I asked, relaxing in my oversized chair just to piss her off even more, "Did Little Pete fall down a well or something? Because I have better things to do than-"

"You won't have to worry about having to put the effort into flicking your hand, Caine," Astrid replied.

I really wish that I had a title or something else to reinforce my superiority. Subjects shouldn't be able to just address their rulers by name like that.

"Then why are you here?" I asked, making no effort to hide my boredom.

"Well, my brother didn't go down a well, but yours might have," Astrid answered.

"If you're expecting me to go and save him, you're dead wrong."

"I was being figurative, not literal!"

"What do you mean?"

"Seriously, you didn't detect the innuendo? I thought you were a teenage boy."

"Okay, your boyfriend's cheating on you. Why should I care?"

"Because he's cheating on me with Diana Ladris."

"WHAT!?"

That was it. Sam Temple was going to die in the slowest, most painful way I could think. He could be Connie's favorite, he could be the town's favorite, but he could NEVER be Diana's favorite. I pointed to the door, in hopes that Astrid would leave without much effort on my part so that I could formulate a plan. Unfortunately, she didn't. She just stood there with her hands on her hips, looking up at me impatiently.

"Do you have anything else to tell me?" I asked, trying to fake politeness as convincingly as I possibly could.

"No, I was just sticking around to make sure that you weren't going to do anything irrational."

"Let me get this straight, you thought I was going to do something irrational so you _didn't_ get the Hell out of here? I thought you were a genius, but I guess I was wrong. That's a first."

"Why would preventing you from doing something insane be anything but genius?"

"Because you have a snowball's chance in Hell of stopping me."

"I don't appreciate your blasphemy!"

"I don't appreciate your snippiness. Now leave."

"Fine, if you're so eager to get rid of me, I'll leave!"

Astrid turned on her heel dramatically, causing her hair to whip around like a blonde tornado. Then she threw her nose into the air and stomped out towards the door. As she reached for the doorknob with her dainty, feminine hand I had an epiphany.

"Wait!" I called out, "I have an idea."

Astrid was stone still, and the room was eerily silent. She slowly, almost cautiously, pulled her hand away from the doorknob and coyly looked over her shoulder. She looked me up and down, as if she was sizing me up.

"What is it?" she asked, without bothering to completely turn around.

"Why don't we beat Sam and Diana at their own game? You can show my brother what it feels like to be cheated on and I can hopefully make Diana think she isn't my only option."

Astrid turned around and gazed at me for a second.

"I can't do it!" she declared.

"Why not?" I asked. _She _could not find _me _unappealing. She was Astrid Ellison, the all too innocent, know-it-all blonde who was constantly slipping in and out of hostage negotiation! Sure, she was pretty and she had a great body, but her personality ruined any chance she had of actually being sexy.

"It's adultery!" Astrid fired back with a surprising amount of confidence. It was shrill, snippy confidence, but confidence all the same.

"So what? That doesn't seem to concern your boyfriend," I replied.

"Just because he sins doesn't mean I should."

"You're such a prude."

"Well, you're a villain, a monster, and a chauvinist pig!"

"I won't deny the first two, but I'm definitely not sexist. I treat everyone this way."

"How is that any better?"

"I never said it was. I was just keeping things real."

"You were just being horrible, that's what you were doing!"

"Calm down, Astrid. There's no need to get freaked out."

"Well, there's no need to drag me into your sick, twisted plans, either."

"How is wanting to kiss you sick and twisted?"

"Lust and envy are both sins."

"Shit, I'm going to Hell then."

"You just realized this now?"

I let out a loud sigh and rolled my eyes. If I would've known that proposing my plan to Astrid would've to this, I wouldn't have suggested it in the first place. Still, Astrid hadn't left yet, so I wasn't about to give up. Obviously, there was still some part of her that wanted to get back at Sam, or else she would've been gone by now.

"So, do you have any more ideas, or should I be going?" Astrid asked indignantly.

"What if I kissed you?" I asked, "That wouldn't be your sin, would it?"

"I guess not," Astrid said, twirling her hair and looking down at the ground. For a second I was sure she was flirting with me, but doubt quickly set in. I wasn't her type, and she was way too much of a good girl to even consider it.

"So, are you going to kiss me or not?" Astrid wondered, "Earlier it was all you could talk about, but now you're just sitting there."

"Oh, yeah, of course," I mumbled, as I got up from my desk and made my way over to Astrid.

When I reached her, I was surprised by the fiery gaze in her steely blue eyes. Gone was the angry, closed off girl who had walked in. Now, there was a mischievous, satisfied smile creeping across her cheek. I didn't even know that she knew how to smile like that. I only thought she was capable of frowning and scowling. Maybe she wasn't as innocent as I thought she was.

When I pressed my lips against hers, I was surprised by her response. She kissed me without restraint, running her hands up and down my back as if she wanted to feel every inch of my body. It only took a few seconds for her fingertips to climb from my lower back, up my neck, and then to wrap themselves in my hair. She took a handful and pulled it just enough so that I could feel it, but not too much that actually hurt. I was a little bit more restrained, since I knew she was really religious and she'd probably be pissed at me if I had too much fun, but I did end up doing more than I thought she'd let me get away with. The kiss was only lasted a few seconds, but those few seconds were wild and surprisingly uncontrollable.

When she pushed me away, she was panting slightly, but I wouldn't have noticed it if we hadn't been so close. Now, her eyes weren't cold like ice, but calm and inviting like the water in a swimming pool. She was smiling widely and her lips had lost a notable amount of their pink lipstick. Note to self: find a mirror as soon as possible.

"Okay, I have to be honest with you," Astrid began.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Sam never cheated on me with Diana."

"Then why did you do all this?"

"It was just...an experiment."

"I thought that adultery was too much of a sin for a good girl like you."

"Well, you kissed me. That doesn't make it a sin, does it?"

Then, she grinned at me, flipped her hair, and then turned around. Suddenly, she had frozen up again. She was done smiling, teasing, and manipulating. She was back to the icy, closed off girl who had walked in with a secret agenda, only to leave with her mission accomplished.

I'd like to amend my earlier statement: The only thing I know about Astrid Ellison is…I'll get back to you on that if I ever figure her out.


End file.
